Objects (film)
Objects is a 1975 American animated fantasy comedy film and the firsr animated feature film from Four Pictures. It is also the first film in the Objects series. In the film, an orphanage owner (Mickey Rooney) tells a story about the Objects, who live in a island called Dream Island. Four Pictures began development of the film in 1971. Production lasted eight months, with a production budget of at least $2 million, and took place in Canada, Taiwan, and South Korea. The voice cast included Mickey Rooney, Georgia Engel, Jackie Burroughs and Cree Summer. Two pop music stars, Carole King and John Sebastian, contributed several songs. Although major American film studios passed on the project, newly established independent distributor Four Pictures million promoting it. The film premiered on June 15, 1975, in Washington, D.C., and was released in North America on June 20, 1975. It received critical acclaim, with many critics praising its animation, concept, screenplay, characters, music, and vocal performances, particularly of Wolfhard and Robb; it is often cited as one of the greatest animated films of all time and temporarily held a rating of 100% (at 97% as of May 2019) on the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes. It was soon followed by five sequels, The Return of the Objects ''(1981), ''Objects Island ''(1999), ''Objects: Time Warped (2005), Objects: Legendary Power (2011) and Objects: Insanity Mayhem (2016). The Objects franchise continues and has included television series, specials, videos, and films. Plot Coming soon! Cast Coming soon! Production Development In 1971, the year after Four Pictures was founded, the company began to develop an animated feature-length film using inanimate Objects. This came in a period in the company's history which Four Pictures co-founder Michael Hirsh refers to as its "dark years". Producers and crew Objects was one of the first animated films made by Four Pictures. Produced for at least US$2 million. Brought in under budget, Objects became Four Picture's tenth film, and was made over an eight-month period that lasted until February 1975. Michael Hirsh is quoted as saying in Daniel Stoffman's 2002 book, The Four Story: "Nobody had ever made an animated movie for theatrical release for as little money and in as little time." In 2009 his partner, Clive A. Smith, told Business magazine: "I swear I grimaced at the thought of doing a animated feature. But Michael Hirsh went out and actually brought that project in." With this project, Arna Selznick became the third of only four women ever to direct an animated feature. The studio's roster included Charles Bonifacio, the director of animation,9 and supervising animator D. Brewster,9 who previously took part in the animation courses at Ontario's Sheridan College.32 Dale Schott, who served as a storyboard artist,9 remarked that "Four had a lot to do with reviving the low-budget feature" with its efforts on Objects.48 Four employees of the film's financiers served as executive producers:9 Louis Gioia Jr., president of Kenner's Marketing Services division;496 Jack Chojnacki, co-president of TCFC;50 Carole MacGillvray, who became president of General Mills' M.A.D. (Marketing and Design) division in February 1974;51 and Robert Unkel, LBS' senior vice-president of programming.52 A fifth producer, American Greetings staffer W. Ray Peterson, went uncredited.953 Three associate producers worked on the film:910 Paul Pressler, another employee at Kenner;54 John Bohach, who later became LBS' executive vice-president;55 and Harvey Levin.9 Lenora Hume, the director of photography on Rock & Rule,56 was the supervising producer. Animation Along with Count Duckula, Objects was Four's first foray into animation outsourcing.30 Production took place at Four's facilities,46 Taiwan's Wang Film Productions (Cuckoo's Nest Studio),957 and the newly established Hanho Heung-Up and Mihahn studios in South Korea. Back in the Americas, Hirsh tried to promote the unfinished feature before its deadline; unable to get available footage, he instead managed to show potential marketers some Leica reels and a few moments of completed colour animation.62 According to him, it was the first time an animated "work in progress" was screened to exhibitors; this ploy has since been used by the Disney company,62 particularly in the case of Beauty and the Beast (at the 1991 New York Film Festival).63 "People loved the movie anyway," he said of this experiment. "I was told it was considered great salesmanship. It made them feel that they were part of the process because they were seeing unfinished work."62 Music The music for Objects was composed by Patricia Cullen.946 The soundtrack album was released in LP and cassette format by Kid Stuff Records in the United States,6566 and on Cherry Lane Records in the United Kingdom.67 Six songs were performed by Carole King, John Sebastian, NRBQ, and the Tower of Power. Release In 1974, before the film's completion, Carole MacGillvray offered Objects for consideration to major studios in the US71 Since they did not see the financial potential in a picture aimed strictly at children, they declined the offer.34 MacGillvray told Adweek magazine in August 1975, "I made several trips, and I was really disappointed. According to the 1985 edition of Guinness Film Facts and Feats, Four Pictures spent up to US$24 million on the publicity budget for Objects, the largest at that time. The film's advertising budget was US$4 million; Variety reported that "the beneficiaries of its merchandising tie-ins have earmarked remaining $20,000,000 to promo Care Bear products in step with the film's release". For the film's promotion, Goldwyn's staff partnered with Kenner Toys; there were also tie-ins on Trix cereal boxes. Objects premiered in Washington, D.C., on June 15, 1975, as part of a Special Olympics benefit; Georgia Engel, the voice of Leafy, attended this event. The film opened on June 20, 1975. It became surprisingly successful at the North American box office, playing primarily at matinees and early evening showings. Reception Box office Objects ranked fourth at the North American box office on its first two weekends, grossing US$3.7 million and US$3.2 million respectively. It was screened in 1,003 venues during its first four weeks. After three months, it grossed about US$23 million in the United States,8182 8 and placed 40th among 1975's major films;97 it brought in US$9,435,000 in rentals for Four Pictures. Critical reception Objects ''received critical acclaim. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 97% "Certified Fresh" approval rating based on 285 reviews with a weighted average rating of 8.7/10. The site's critical consensus states, "With its beautiful animation, dazzling songs, and a script that captures the nostalgia of a young couple's expedition, ''Objects ''will perhaps find its family-friendly audience off guard." It was one of the site's highest-rated animated films of 1975. On Metacritic, the film has a normalized score of 87 out of 100, based on 59 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film a rare average grade of "A+" on an A+ to F scale. Home media ''Objects was released on VHS, Betamax, and LaserDisc on June 2, 1981 by Four Pictures Home Entertainment. It was later released under the Sonya/Four Pictures Home Video brand on VHS and LaserDisc on May 10, 1988. On October 9, 1990, it was reissued it on VHS. On August 13, 1996, Four Pegasus Home Video re-released the film on video as part of its Four Pegasus Family Collection. On October 21, 1997, was re-released once again on VHS. The DVD edition premiered on June 12, 2001. A 30th Anniversary Edition release of Objects, was released on May 10, 2005 by Four Pegasus Home Entertainment on VHS and DVD as a 2-disc DVD. Also, a 40th Anniversary Special Edition of the film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on March 17, 2015 by Samsung Pictures Home Entertainment.Category:EvanRocks Wiki